Misunderstandings
by LostLyra
Summary: Five years after the first zombie attack the boys have to deal with another onslaught on their hands. However they also have to deal with Phineas constant denial of his feelings, even if he does proudly display the Emotional Bravery Badge on his arm.


Something quick and fluffy that I whipped up, hopefully you like it!

LostLyra

"Hey Ferb?" a teen summoned the attention of his brother as he was buried under their latest invention. His ever attentive brother raised stopped what he was doing and joined him under the machine. "What do you do when someone says they like you?"

The green-haired boy blinked in surprise, almost thudding his head on the underbelly of the entangled mess of wires from the machine.

"Oh," the red head turned back to the machine, wondering if his brother would be any help in this dilemma at all. He winced as his finger caught in the tangled mess of wires and swore as an electric shock worked its way up his arm. "I give up!" he yelped, pulling himself from under the machine and standing in one fluid movement. His anger quickly dissipated as he realised what he and his brother had accomplished in a few short hours. Ever since the pharmacists attack on Danvil the brothers' inventing hobby had been discovered. Of course their parents had been furious, and of course Candace was exhilarated, but after the near-takeover of their small town the boys had been dubbed as heros, and the townsfolk had started to band together to fight the infection.

"She looks good doesn't she?" Ferb stated as he joined his brother's side.

"I'd say," the red head crossed his arms over his chest and grinned. In the hanger that they had constructed stood a large bi-plane. It had originally been a crop sprayer, but they had modified the cock-pit to carry more than one person and increased the volume of water that it could carry. The outside of the plane itself was complete, but the inner wiring still required thought and utmost care. "Although it's a pain that the circuits are still live,"

Ferb nodded in reply as they made their way into their small family home.

"Phineas, Ferb, snacks are on the table," their mother's voice echoed from the kitchen as they wandered in, toeing off their boots as they entered the house.

"Great thanks mom!" Phineas grinned, leaning against the kitchen work surface and taking one of the snacks, handing a second to his brother.

"Oh Phineas, Isabella was around earlier, she was asking after you," Linda popped her head around the kitchen door. Surprised as she watched her son's face pale, the cookie he was holding nearly slipping out of his hand.

"Great," Phineas forced his grin wider, grabbing the milk that his brother offered him and drinking it hastily, as to avoid any further questioning.

"Right," Linda shook her head at her teen's behaviour. "You boys behave, you know I'm still not happy with the whole inventing thing but I want you to be safe. No going out over the walls; even if it's to test that new plane, understood?"

"Yes mother," Ferb replied, his eyebrow elegantly raised at his brother's response.

"I'm heading over to Charlene's, girls night in and all that," Linda smiled at her boys, and turned, leaving the room to get ready for her night out.

Ferb nodded, turning back to his brother who was now prodding dejectedly at a cookie, before breaking it in half and then into quarters, and feeding one to Perry, who was sitting patiently at his master's side.

"Ferb I really screwed up," Phineas started, his face twisting in frustration. He pulled out a small faded badge, emblazoned with the words _Emotional_ _Bravery, _and rubbed his thumb along the pale orange stitching. He rested his head in the palm of his hand and scrubbed his fingers through his hair. "Y'know five years ago? When the first outbreak struck? I remember _everything_,"

To his surprise his brother choked on thin air, before looking him dead in the eye.

"I thought it'd be better to let her think that I didn't, I think it was the rubber outer suit that kept most of my memories intact. I was never able to form a sentence in reply,"

"Hah I knew it!" the boisterous voice of their sister startled them, and Phineas spun around, a blush covering his cheeks as his sister took there, her hands on her hips as she smirked at him. "So when you gonna tell her?"

"I'm not," the boy replied defensively, slipping the precious badge in his jacket pocket. "I'm never going to tell her,"

Ferb shook his head in regret, wondering why his brother was being so defensive about his feelings for his best friend.

"Why?" Candace's face fell, realising at her brother was in mental turmoil. "Come on bro, talk it out," she rested on the edge of the work top, snatching a cookie from the plate.

"She's my best friend right?" Phineas started, playing with the crumbs on the counter top. "It's not really fair to even _try_ anything with her. She's like a sister," his face twisted into an expression of despair. "I really _do_ like her, but I can't really do anything about it, not in these circumstances,"

Ferb sighed, shaking his head again, and sipping at his milk. This was ridiculous.

"That is the worst excuse that I've ever heard," Candace replied, an unimpressed glower across her features. "I'll tell you something that will _not_ leave this room understood?" both boys nodded their heads. "That girl has been head over heels for you since forever, she's liked you for an _age_, and _you're_ the one that is worried about not liking her?"

To their surprise Phineas thumped his head onto the table with a loud groan, scrubbing his hands through his hair as he wallowed in self pity. Suddenly the city's warning siren exploded into action, the loud wailing noise screaming its warning. Phineas jumped up, quickly followed by his brother.

"We need to get to base!" he decided, the practiced leadership skills that he'd gained over the last two years swinging into action.

"Boys don't you dare!" there was a call from Linda as she raced down the stairs, worry written across her face. "I warned you, that plane's not finished, it's not safe!"

"We're not taking the plane Mom," Phineas insisted, "We're gonna take the gliders, besides the Fireside Girls and the guys are waiting for us!"

"Boys did you hear the siren?" their father's voice sounded from the lounge. "They're calling up the Resistance, you're part of that aren't you?"

"Lawrence!" his mother barked in frustration, fear hounding the edge of her voice.

"Sorry dear," their father turned to calm the distressed woman. "It's really their choice,"

"They're just children!" Linda replied, stress clear in her voice and panic.

"I assure you Mother we can handle it," Ferb's calm voice interrupted his mother's clear panic.

"Yeah they've handled worse before!" Candace replied enthusiastically, coming to stand with her brothers.

Pinching the bridge of her nose Linda sighed. "Fine, I swear if either of you boys get hurt, you're grounded!"

* * *

>"Rodger that!" Phineas grinned. "Come on Ferb we're gonna be late!"<p><p>

"Isabella where the heck is Dinner Bell?" a burly teen bellowed as he fixed his mask across his face, and clambered into his personalised glider.

"I don't know!" came the worried reply. A girl dressed in uniform was ordering her troop into instructing the take off formations.

"We're here!" Phineas's voice was dulled by the chaos in the busy hanger, Ferb was running behind him, attaching the last few clips to his protective suit. He jumped into his own glider, raising a hand in greeting to his other comrades.

"Phineas!" the boy turned and grinned at his best friend as she pressed the communicator headset into his hands.

"Thanks," he turned and ran to his own glider, easily jumping into the cockpit and powering the flyer up. "Testing, testing communications,"

"Baljeet!" his Indian friend's voice echoed through the communication's receiver.

"Buford at the ready," the strong voice of the burly teen echoed in his ears.

"Ferb?" there was a silent pause. "Right we're all ready, Isabella get us outa here,"

"Ready on that Phineas, you've got two squadrons out there already, they can't cope with the numbers. Omega and Zion,"

"Thanks, Isa. Hear that guys, we're back up only, this is a mitigate mission, not a seek and destroy mission," (there was an audible grown from Buford).

"Okay that's enough chit-chat!" Isabella's voice sounded through the communication system. "You boys better get over there and fast, numbers are piling up and _fast_!"

"Rodger that Isabella!" Phineas replied, placing his hands on the gliders controls and doing the final pre-checks before take off.

"Yo Dinner Bell you like her cause you like bein' bossed around?" the gilders started up, and the old Fireside troops started to direct them to the runway, their glowing batons swinging methodically in the dark.

Phineas snorted. "What? No, I don't like her _that_, way," he grinned shaking his head, and setting the small engine in the glider into motion. "Why do you ask?"

"'Cause you carry that Emotional Bravery patch with you every time you go out into the Z-Zone," Buford replied smugly. Phineas's face twisted in annoyance, and he nodded to the extra ground control crew that were awaiting his command. His eyes flicked to a picture that was tacked onto the side of his control console. It was a picture of when they were young, from that first summer when they'd decided that they were going to start inventing. In a moment of rare emotional instability he rubbed his thumb across the fading picture of the three of them. Wondering where the innocence and gone.

"Phineas are you there?" Baljeet's voice echoed into his head and he was pulled from his nostalgic stupor.

"Yeah," he muttered, realising that they were now outside on the runway, and were ready to depart. "Isabella awaiting your orders,"

"Gretchin here," came the cold voice from down the end of the line. "Isabella's been needed in the medical bay, some of the Z-Zone boys have come back and it's not good,"

"Oh maybe she heard you say that you didn't like her!" Baljeet's voice interrupted their conversation, and Phineas felt the colour train from his face.

"Gretchin put her back online, I need to speak to her!" he demanded, his voice shaking with annoyance.

"No Flynn-Fletcher you've done enough. Get ready to take off we'll see you when you've done your job,"

"Gretchin!" he retorted furiously, seething at his own stupidity.

"I suggest we get out there and do what we have to do before we become overrun again," Ferb's calm voice soothed the fiery conversation.

"Sounds like a good idea. Over and out," Gretchin's voice ordered, and clicked off, so the line was only connected to the four gliders.

"Right, Z-Zone," Phineas grunted, revving his engine and pushing the plane forwards with a practised control of his joystick. "Here we come,"

The boys arrived late back into the hanger that night. It had gone passed eleven and they were exhausted, mentally and physically. Team Omega had almost fallen, and to make matters worse, the hordes of (now confused and wandering American's) had to be housed for the night. They had to think on their toes, and had constructed another outer wall for the small city. The cleanup team had joined them just gone ten and pressed that the small group of heroes return back to their homes. Phineas winced, regarding the cut above his eye with an incredulous glower. One of the newly recovered, and disorientated men had thrown a punch to his face, the man's wedding ring had sliced across his eye and almost blinded him, but Ferb and Buford had managed to trap him with their own weight and calm him down. The pain was still there but there were other things that he had to take care of.

"How's the face Dinner Bell?" Buford's exhausted voice sounded next to him, the burly teen had stripped off his protective gear and was now dressed in a pair of sweats and a shirt.

"Stings," Phineas muttered. "Mom's gonna kill me,"

"Sorry I couldn't help it a bit earlier," Buford apologised, a rare smile glinting across his features.

"You did everything you could," Phineas replied, smiling back to his close friend.

"I apologise that I wasn't any help as well," Baljeet joined the group as they made their way into the mess hall.

"You've got nothin' to apologise for," Buford was already slipping an arm around the younger Indian's waist, his glower towards Phineas daring him to question his affections.

Phineas shrugged and grinned. "Just don't rub in the fact that you're getting more than me and I'm fine with it!" not even Baljeet's dark cheeks could hide his rosy hinted blush.

Ferb grinned, however it dropped when he saw that Isabella and her troop were sitting at the far end of the mess hall, chattering away like there wasn't a care in the world. "I think we should have dinner somewhere else boys," Ferb decided, not wanting the obvious confrontation that would arise from the pair of them.

"Naw, but we get free meals as part of the Resistance, and what my stomach says goes!" Buford delcared loudly, turning heads as he relaxed his arm from his boyfriend and strode up to the end of the queue, his dark brown eyes daring anybody to dare with him.

"It's sad that I have to fight for attention with food isn't it?" Bajeet grinned, follow his persistent boyfriend.

"That's why I'm staying out of relationships at present," Phineas explained, stuffing his hands into his front pockets.

"Not even for Isabella's sake?" Baljeet asked casually, joining his boyfriend at the far end of the line.

Phineas stalled. "I, I don't know," he knew that he was blushing, as he felt the heat rising to his cheeks.

"Well it's been obvious that she likes you for years," Buford stated, nodding in thanks as his plate was piled with food.

"It has?" he turned to Ferb, (who to his surprise was slipping glances across to one of Cadence's friends – Vanessa). "Ferb?"

His brother was startled from his looking and turned back to Phineas, nodding in answer to his unspoken question.

"Have I really been that dense?" he dead-panned as the four walked over to another table.

"I mean you're about as dense as Ferb when he realises he's got a crush on that Vanessa chick," Buford stated, picking up a fork as they sat down.

To Phineas's surprise Ferb's face flushed a deep red. "I haven't been dense," the boy replied quietly. "I just know that it'll never work,"

Buford winced and Baljeet gave his tactless boyfriend a glower.

"Sorry," Buford muttered, rubbing the back of his neck with one large hand. "Y'know sometimes what's in my 'ead don't stay there,"  
>"Would have been helpful earlier," Ferb retorted, sending a glance to his now silent brother. He blinked as he saw Isabella walking towards their table, something clutched in her hand, to his regret he saw that it was a small metal tin, and he then knew <em>exactly<em> what it was.

"Head up," Buford grunted. On request Phineas lifted his head, grinning nervously as Isabella stopped at their table, her eyes taking in the exhausted group, with something akin to empathy.

"Phineas. You dropped something," she held out the puckered and dented tin, causing Phineas to start, and he took the object from her grip.

"Aww, man the tin's busted," he complained, gutted as the clip popped open, displaying the faded badge underneath.

"At least it proves that our fabric strengthener works," Ferb prompted.

"Where did you find this?" Phineas asked.

"One of the ground crew found it when we were checking the gliders," Isabella replied tersely.

"At least I haven't lost it," Phineas muttered, struggling to press the buckled clip closed before he slipped it into his pocket.

"You kept it?" Isabella's cheeks flushed with a light blush.

"Of course," Phineas smiled, the tips of his ears burning a deep red.

"Jeeze, I could cut the sexual tension with a _knife_," Buford groaned. "Just take her round the back and- ow Jeet!" the burly boy glowered in defeat as his boyfriend stamped hard on his foot.

"Shut it Buford, or do I have to shut your mouth for you?" Baljeet hissed furiously.

"You weren't complaining in the showers earlier when I shut _yours_ for you," the persistent ex-bully smirked, loving the way that his boyfriend's face flushed. However their playful flirting was ignored as Phineas carefully picked his way through the awkward conversation with Isabella.

"You never earned that patch did you?" Phineas asked carefully, wondering where this would lead. To his surprise he saw her cheeks flush with shame.

"What's it to you?" she replied bitterly, "Want to make something of it?"

"No, I-"

"Whatever, I'm going to go fly," Isabella turned and started to head out of the mess hall. Without thinking Phineas scrambled off his seat, wincing as his muscles protested from the overexertion, and hurried forwards, stopping her with a hand on her shoulder.

"Phineas don't," she stressed, squaring her shoulders and shrugging off his hand, before stalking towards the door of the mess hall.

He glanced to Ferb who blinked, and shrugged, and Phineas knew that he was on his own. "You can't go out, it's curfew,"

"I'm not planning on going outside the walls, _Phineas_," the girl span around, her eyes flashing dangerously as she stood opposite him. "So are you going to order me about any more, or can I make my own way out?"

Phineas winced, and rubbed the back of his neck, holding back another wince when he accidentally rubbed at a particularly nasty bump from the fight earlier.

"So are you going to stand there or let me go _Lord Phineas_?" she have him a fake curtsy, and then stood forwards. "Or do you want your best friend to boss you around?"

"Ow!" there was a yelp from Buford and Phineas presumed that Baljeet had once again stepped on his foot as punishment for his earlier tactlessness.

"I'm," he could feel every Resistance, ground control and ex-Fireside Girl's eyes on him as he was paralysed to the spot.

"I thought so," Isabella declared coldly and spun on her heel.

"I would get her now before you loose her forever," once again Ferb's quiet wisdom was enough to jar Phineas into action.

"I remember everything!" Phineas blurted, but Isabella continued to walk on, her hand on was the door, and Phineas decided that he was going to either have to make a fool of himself now, or loose it all forever. "I remember everything that happened on the water tower five years ago!" he watched as Isabella froze her hand resting on the metal handle of the mess-hall door.

"Don't lie to me Phineas," her voice was quiet and watery, holding the hint of tears that were desperately being pushed down.

"I'm not Isabella I promise," he paused, wondering how he could make this clearer to her. "Look I shouldn't even have this patch," he pulled the dented tin out from his breast pocket and flipped it open, and plucked the faded heart emblazoned patch from its enclosure. "I shouldn't have it because I don't deserve it,"

"Phineas, do you really expect me to think that you carry that out into the field every day you go?" her voice was quiet laced with a hint of sarcasm.

"_Yes_," he stressed, stepping towards her. "Because it's my lucky patch. In this case it's saved me more than once, and if it hadn't have been for your quick thinking that evening we wouldn't even been here. I would have been turned as soon as that clone had broken through that door, and you know it's true,"

A silence fell over the mess hall, not many knew about the events of that first night, and those who did had faded memories or decided to keep the action to themselves. It was the first time that anybody out of the small group of friends had mentioned what had occurred, and for one of the 'dubbed' Heroes of Danville to proclaim that it wasn't his actions that lead to the savoir of the city, was unheard of.

"Isabella, you're an unsung hero, you know that. I full well know that. You were the one to push that button, I wasn't quick enough,

"Phineas don't," the girl turned around to face him, and to his shock he saw tears pooling in the corners of her eyes. "Don't you think that I don't know that? Why did you keep this from me all this time?"

"Because," he swallowed, and wondered why he had started to sweat. "Because I wasn't brave enough, you're my _best friend_, Isabella. I don't want to lose what we have, you're my rock," he bit his lip worrying it between his teeth as he stood, badge still clutched between forefinger and thumb. "And I keep this on me to remind me, whatever happens I have to get back, because if I don't then I'm leaving somebody behind that means even more to me than this patch. That's why I don't deserve this patch. I've been too dense and too afraid to try and make anything work, as I was worried that I was going to lose this friendship that we have between us. That'd break my heart, y'know, losing what we have here because of some failed fleeting romance,"

Isabella and the entire mess hall was stunned into silence.

"So, yeah, that's why I keep this with me..." he could feel the flush of shame rising up his cheeks. _Please say something, _he thought desperately. _Please, please say something_.

"How long did it take you to come up with that?" Isabella's voice was soft, and wavering, her hands were balled into fists at her sides, (a habit he knew that she did when she wanted to nervously fiddle with something).

He shrugged. "Look if I've really screwed this whole thing over, this is yours," he handed the patch to her, it's faded edge wilting slightly as he moved.

"No I don't want it back," Isabella replied, "I don't care if that took you ten years or ten seconds to think up, I don't think anyone's ever stumbled over their words that much to say something so simple as; I love you,"

Phineas's heart stopped in his mouth and he felt a weight lift from his shoulders. Wasn't it supposed to be the other way around? Wasn't the man supposed to sweep the woman off her feet with a gallant gesture? He was stunned, almost dropping the patch in his shock at her revelation.

"So I think that you should keep it," he felt Isabella's hands enclosed over his as she stepped towards him. She was so close, he could smell her shampoo, and count the little flecks of golden brown in her eyes.

"Yeah," he managed, his heart still hammering wildly in his chest. Did she know that she was that beautiful?

"Well I do now," her voice interrupted his thoughts, and he blinked, glancing down at her as she blushed prettily.

"Did I say that out loud?" Phineas choked, his voice catching with embarrassment. He was sure that somewhere behind him he could hear one of the ex-Fireside Girls giggle, and he was pretty sure that it was Gretchin.

"Yes, but it's nice to know that you think that," Isabella smiled, the blush now covering her cheeks in a healthy red glow.

"JUST KISS THE GIRL FOR CRUD'S SAKE!" Buford's voice punctuated their awkward silence.

"Bu_ford_!"

"_Ow_!"

"I suppose that's an idea," Isabella muttered softly, realising that their hands were still tightly intertwined.

"Yes, yes it is," there first kiss was soft and delicate, as Phineas pressed his lips to Isabella's. The cat-calls and wolf-whistles were muffled around them as they stood, intertwined in the centre of the mess hall. They pulled away, both starry eyed and blushing, as they realised the eyes upon them.

"So that happened," Phineas grinned abashedly, ignoring the idol and excited chatter that surrounded them after their latest development.

"I was hoping that it'd happen again," Isabella prompted, looking up at him through her thick raven-coloured eyelashes.

"Yes, yes, it will," Phineas replied, leaning down to kiss her again. The patch was still clutched in their intertwined hands, and now _nobody _could say that they hadn't earned it.

I know incredibly cheesy and incredibly fluffy, but I hoped you enjoyed it! I do want to do a more "Night of the Living Pharmacist" AU, but I'm not sure about the reception.

I might do one about Isabella helping Phineas to get ready for battle or something like that... *scratches chin in thought*

Anyway hope you liked it and please review or favourite if you feel like it!

LostLyra.


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